removing 1927 Dodge rear wheels

[river rat]

I am trying to do a complete brake job on a 1927 Dodge sedan. This means removing the rear wood spoke wheels. I took of the demountable rim, the small hub cap, cotter pin, castle nut, and washer. I also loosened the main brake lining material. I attached a large pulley puller but the wheel won't budge, even with help from a large hammer. I certainly don't want to damage the wheel be applying excessive force with the puller. Can anyone offer any suggestions? PS: This is a "one owner" car. My grandfather bought it new in 1927!

[Mark Shaw]

The old timers method is to jack up the wheel opposite the one you want to remove and leave the one you want to remove on the ground. Loosen the castle nut until it is flush with the end of the axle. Put a block of wood against the nut and give it a firm hit it with a sledge hammer.

This actually moves the car away from the wheel you want to remove. It works too.

[Guest rbl2]

When I first got my 26 Chevy I couldn't get the brake drums off. A VCCA tech told me to loosen the nut a couple of turns, replace the cotter key, and drive around the block a few times. Problem solved.

Before I re-installed the brake drums I made sure all rust was removed from the inside where the shaft goes and I put a little bit of oil on the axle shaft. I haven't had any problems removing the brake drums since.

[river rat]

Hitting the end of the axle hard enough to move the entire body over sounds a little drastic. I would worry about causing internal damage in the rear end. I'll save the method for a last ditch effort. Thanks.

[river rat]

Unfortunately the vehicle is not drivable right now while I work on a few other items. Once I get things put back together I'll try your idea if I haven't found another solution. It sounds like a simple, effective plan. Thanks.

[keiser31]

I would try to purchase the correctly threaded hub-style wheel puller. I have seen many on ebay and I just sold four of them. I know that they are out there.

[nearchoclatetown]

Try one of the DB parts dealers, they may have them.

[huptoy]

It would help if you can post a photo of your 'large pulley puller' as well as the size of the hub. I would assume the thread count is 16 to the inch.

[nearchoclatetown]

No pics here. If you would imagine an acorn nut that threaded on where the hubcap was. In the center of the end of the acorn nut is a bolt that would push against the axle to pull the wheel or drum off. A repair manual or maybe the online Dyke's manual would show a picture if you still need it. The thread of the acorn nut would match the individual car.

[keiser31]

Here is what some of the different types of hub pullers look like.

[nearchoclatetown]

My DB puller is 2 7/16 X 16 thread.

[river rat]

Thanks for everyone's help. I got a little more aggressive with the puller and found a bigger hammer. Instead of hitting the back of the wheel I hit the center screw of the puller. Then I could tighten it up another half turn and repeat the process. On the fourth hit the first wheel popped right off. The other one had been loosened by all the pounding and slid right off.

[Mark Shaw]

Those "old timers" wern't so dumb after all...

[Guest stude8]

This response is to Mark, I like the theory of jacking the one side and loosening the axle nut on opposite side then driving against the axle end with a sledge.

Unfortunately my 1928 Studebaker Commander wood wheel hubs are on the taper axles so tight they won't budge. I heated the hub as hot as I dare without scorching the wood spokes with an acetylene torch and whacked it several more time but not even a hint of loosening?

The factory manual shows the thread-on hub puller with the split wall and pinch bolt to grip the threads snuggly. I only have a non-pinch bolt style (2-3/4"-16 thread RH) hub puller that doesn't grip the threads of the hub tight enough to pull against the hub with the center bolt.

I used a resin wheel whizzer tool to split the side wall and tried to clamp it tighter on the threads with a large bearing puller clamp tool but that doesn't give the result needed either. I might have some pinch bolt "Bosses" welded to that body to give the grip strength needed.

I have photos from another Studebaker owner who had a tool made in a machine shop to fit the 2-3/4" hub. I am ready to invest in getting a clone made but wonder if there are any other solutions somebody can suggest first.

I like the looks of the first image in Keiser's post, a beefy looking tool, is it 2-3/4-16?

Stude8

[Stude17]

Stude 8 I know of no other solution than what you are already trying. Get a solid hub puller that fits the hub cap thread tightly and put as much pressure on the centre bolt as you can before hitting the end of the centre bolt with as much force as possible. It will eventually release but it appears that you have an axle that fits the hub too well and it is going take some effort. I am in the process of restoring a 1917 Studebaker roadster and the rear universal joint fits onto a taped input shaft on the transaxle. On one gearbox the joint almost fell off the shaft while another required a 30 ton hydraulic press to release it. Good luck.

[Guest]

On my car I take the back wheels off every six or seven years, usually to reline the back brakes. When I put the axle nut on properly ie 175 ft/lbs torque it takes a real whallop to remove the hub. I have the proper puller that screws onto the hub cap threads and if it is screwed on properly and tight when i tighten the cener boltinto the end of the axle it takes over a two foot swing with a 10 lb sledge to break it loose. Anything less is a waste of time and energy.

Before I had the proper puller I used to just back off the axle nut flush with the end of the axle (with the wheel I wanted to remove on the ground and the opposite wheel jacked up. I would have an helper hold a 4"x 4" hardwood block against the nut and I would strike the block in the same fashion.

I also have a puller set with different caps that screw onto the end of the axle and you are able to strike this directly rather than needing a block.

I have had my rear wheels off about nine times in the last 49 years and in all cases having the opposite wheel jacked up and the weight of the car on the wheel that is being removed and a large hammer seem to be the key. Most people seem to be shy about the amount of force that they use. HIT IT HARD

[Guest stude8]

Merv & Reid

Thanks for your moral support on how hard a whack it takes to free a stuck wood wheel hub.

I am planning to rent an air powered hammer to apply rapid repeating strikes to the target axle end. I have tried my 10 LB sledge as hard as I dare swing it but the rear fender over hang makes hitting the target axle end a test of my aim that scares me if I miss or slip off target and hit the nice wood spokes I wouldn't want to damage.

I would like to find a 2-3/4"-16RH hub puller "Cup Shape" tool with the pinch bolt feature to grib the hub snug.

Once I get this dog off I will be sure to power wire brush the axle taper and hub ID and apply some "Anti-sieze" compound before reassembling. That will insure it will come apart easier in the future if ever needed.

Stude8

[Guest]

The reason for the 4 x 4 wood block (about 18" long) was to move the striking area outside the fender line. Using hardwood and end grain dosen't weaken the striking force too much.

[nearchoclatetown]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: stude8</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> and apply some "Anti-sieze" compound before reassembling. That will insure it will come apart easier in the future if ever needed.

Stude8 </div></div>That's a big NO-NO on a taper, never use never-sieze on a taper. Never-sieze is TOO much of a lubricant allowing the tapers to seat to tight. I've seen tapers broken because of it. Clean it, sand it, file it, whatever to make it true, apply some oil and put it together. I'm a big fan of never-sieze on just about everything that will be taken apart again, but not tapers.

[Stude17]

The concept that never-sieze is too much of a lubricant allowing the tapers to seat too tight is interesting. Wouldn't a thin film of never-sieze be ideal to allow the axle to be properly tightened in the hub and stop fretting of the mating surfaces? An axle fitted this way should should not pose any problem when removal is required.

[nearchoclatetown]

At work we install tapered Pulley hubs on large equipment, gear boxes and motors. 3 or 5 inch shafts are common sizes. Instructions with new hubs specifically say NOT to use never-sieze. The boss's son knew better, ONCE. For the same reason never-sieze should never be used on bolts that are torqued, like head bolts. It will give a false reading, the bolt will be much tighter then it's supposed to be. I'm not saying you can't "get away" with useing it. I'm sure it's been done by plenty of mechanics. A properly fitted taper should be almost water tight, so it shouldn't rust. Yu could even lap old car hubs with compound to make sure they fit right. Just make sure to clean ALL the compound off before reassembly. BTW, under extreme heat and pressure conditions never-sieze will act just like lapping compound and wear a shaft.

[Guest stude8]

Thanks again for the alert about "Lubricating" a taper hub when reinstalling after service.

I do now recall a warning about that procedure a long time ago relative to 1963 Avanti rear brake drums with taper axles in that it can allow excess nut torque and result in splitting the drum hub.

The 1928 torques were not in LB/FT values, more like 150 LB man on 16" Stilson wrench.

I hadn't considered the "anti sieze" compound as a lubricant but your advice is taken seriously.

Stude8

[Guest]

nearchocolatetown is correct. Never ever put anything on a tapered axle. Metal to metal only. If the nut is properly torqued it will take the same force on a puller to remove the hub in a day or a week or fifty years. I have pulled cars out of the woods after sitting for forty or fifty or sixty years and have never had a problem pulling the hubs from the axles. You just need the proper puller and the right force. I also have never seen a hub and axle rusted together. Every time I have separated one both mating surfaces were clean metal.

[Guest Qman]

I need a puller for my 1930 Chrysler 66 rear hubs. Can you tell me where I might buy one short of doing a post in the "wanted"?

[Guest Qman]

I need a puller for my 1930 Chrysler 66 rear hubs. Can you tell me where I might buy one short of doing a post in the "wanted"?

[Guest]

There are at least three vintage wheel pullers on ebay right now. All you need is the correct thread size of you axle.

[Guest Qman]

I looked at eBay and none of them were right and I do not want to use a "knocker". I check with all my Chrysler sources and so far no luck. Thanks for the response.

[Guest]

The "knockers" work fine, much better than just loosening the nut and hitting it. However, if you look at the Ford one on ebay you can see how a proper one is made. It is really quite simple. Another idea on one of these threads was to make a ring to screw onto where the hub cap threads. The ring needs to be wide enough that you can use a moder style gear puller. The real key to any of these is the sharp HEAVY blow to the end of the puller. Most of the damage that is done is because a person taps on the end of the puller. It needs a heavy 24" or more swing with an eight or ten pound hammer.